Cargo
by Hyperbole221
Summary: Second season: When a young psychic becomes a pawn in a UEO crisis struggle, only the Seaquest can serve as a sanctuary. Trying my hardest not to Mary Sue. Fanfic is harder than reg fic.
1. Chapter 1

Frederick Creedrid watched the small blip on his radar and sipped his whiskey. The blip attached itself to the _seaQuest_ as he made his way over to the communicator screen. His own small sub had been detected but passed over as a simple research sub. He was doing research, yes, but not on the wildlife.

"They're holding the package," he said into communicator. He leaned back in his swivel chair as his gelatinous figure jiggled to life. "I'm not sure we're up to this anymore. That's a pretty big military vessel. I've never taken on the navy before."

"There's a first for everything," the voice on the other end snapped. "This time, you're going to have to go in. Or lure them out. We need the program and the codes to override the system."

"It's a little more complicated than I thought," Creedid muttered as he plucked the whiskers from his chin. He scornfully rubbed the little sore spot as speck of blood appeared. "We need a new plan."

"There is no time for a new plan," the voice snapped. "Get the girl out of there and bring her here. She'll get us the info and then the UEO will be at our command."

Vanessa braced herself as her shuttle met the dock. She lowered her eyes to the floor and tried to count the grids in the metal base, but it was no use concentrating. She closed her eyes and tried to hide back tears. The doors opened, and her escorts led her into a dark port.

"Welcome aboard."

Captain Nathan Bridger greeted the young lady with a warm hand shake. She thanks him for the greeting and glanced around the loading dock in amazement.

"Should we show her to her quarters?" asked the guard standing in the door frame. The giant metal door slammed behind her; the metallic clang clamored in her ears like a life-sentence.

"That's a good idea," he said, looking over the young woman. She swallowed tightly, promising herself she wouldn't melt. "Then she can get acquainted with the ship."

It was 0400, so the ship was relatively quiet. Vanessa paused in the hallway, aware of all of the voices she could hear. She bit her lip and followed the warden down the hall. She held her breath as her shoes left a soft thud on the ground; the sound boomed in her ears as though the whole ship would shake.

"Dr. Smith will meet with you in the morning, but why don't you try to relax and get some sleep?" Bridger suggested. "Then we can set up an agenda so you can get a new grasp at your surroundings."

She nodded. Bridger noticed that she seemed more nervous than not. "Yes, sir."

Bridger watched her as she walked away. This girl hardly seemed capable of a problem, let alone a national crisis at that. Her being here should be enough to disengage whoever is searching for her, he decided. And with that thought, she gave him a small, grateful smile.

Lucas Wolenczak was in the science labs when he heard a loud crash come from Wendy's office. He jumped to his feet, abandoning his project, and opened her office door. "Wendy-"

He was surprised to see the young brunette crouching in the middle of the room, repeating her apologies over and over. Dr. Smith stood up quickly to assess the visitor. Her eyes flashed at Lucas, who was still looking at the young lady on the floor. "I'm sorry, Dr. Smith, I thought-"

"It's okay, Lucas," she said, nodding slightly. The young lady on the floor stood up. She brushed her hair back uneasily at the sight of the unwelcome visitor. He was about her age and attractive. Dr. Smith noticed the awkwardness a second too late. She added, "This is Vanessa Dorchester. She'll be staying with us for sometime."

"Oh," Lucas said, looking at her. Vanessa blushed and stared at the floor. "Oh. Um, I'm Lucas. I work in the science labs. Oh."

"Nice to meet you," she mumbled. She looked up at him. His eyes widened when they met her icy gray ones. "Sorry about the crash."

"It's okay," he said, stepping back to the door. He suddenly felt as though he were certainly impeding their time. "Do you need help cleaning up the vase?"

"No thank you, Lucas," Dr. Smith calmly said. "Well take care of it."

Lucas held the door a moment longer. He smiled slightly, although it was obvious he was confused by this new creature. "I'm down the hall if you need anything."

Vanessa waited until the door closed behind him to whirl around, frightened. "Do you think he knows?"

"Were you reading him?" Wendy quietly asked. Vanessa shook her head no; without a single movement, she raised the broken shards and placed them in the trash can. Even Wendy was impressed with her psycho kinesis skills. "Why not?"

"Most likely because he startled me," Vanessa said. She looked at the sky blue water tubes that passed by the room. "I'm sorry. I just-"

"Don't be sorry. I'm very impressed with your skills. I'd read about you, but I'd never thought-" she caught herself. It was one thing to praise the eighteen-year-old for her amazing skill… "You are phenomena."

"I'm dangerous," Vanessa mumbled, rolling her eyes. She crumbled into the chair in Wendy's room. Wendy slowly brewed a cup of tea for her. "I can move anything. I can read anyone. And I try so hard not to, but it's so hard not to-"

"I know," Wendy gently said. She handed the cup to Vanessa and watched her delicately sip. For a moment, she realized that Vanessa was going to be like the insecure teenage daughter she'd never had. "You were a student of Clay Marshall, at one point, weren't you?"

"No," Vanessa looked at her, startled. "No, I knew of him, but I knew that if he knew I was as …"

"Powerful," Wendy filled in. Vanessa nodded, "he would've destroyed you."

"Yes. And now, now that I'm being hunted by this renegade group, I don't know…" Vanessa worriedly chewed her finger. "It's hard to control."

"It must be difficult to not have complete control over something as intricate and overwhelming as this," Wendy offered, "so we will try to make the best of it while you are here. I'll work with you to the best of my ability to learn to control it if you do me a favor in return."

"Oh?' Vanessa said, her eyes darkening.

"Work with me in the science lab? You're qualified, so there's no worry," she said. She breezily added, "I'm sure you'll be able to make a few friends there, too – so the stay here won't be so lonely."

Vanessa was secured in her quarters while Bridger held a conference with the General McGrath. They knew she was on the sub, but for fear of espionage … she sighed and picked up a book from her shelf. She was almost certain people on the crew would be informed of her soon, making her the Quasimodo of the ship. She threw the book on the bed and rolled over, smothering herself with the pillow.

"In other news," Bridger continued, pacing the room. He noticed that Lieutenant Brody, Commander Ford, and Lieutenant O'Neil were all spacing out on his meeting. He smiled to himself secretly; it wouldn't be too hard to announce their smallest mission. The blond boy, however, was too attentive. "We are offering a refuge to a young woman who is in need of a sanctuary. She's being hunted by Marauders. This is the safest location for her-"

"Sir," Lucas interrupted. Bridger had known this was coming. "With all due respect, the _seaQuest_ is not a cruise ship. Do you remember what happened the last time we let someone find refuge here?"

"Yes, Lucas, I do," Bridger said. Ford raised an eyebrow.

"The kid has a good point."

"This young lady – Vanessa – has psi abilities beyond Clay Marshall," Bridger bluntly said. "Her powers are absolutely natural, and she works for the UEO. She is being hunted because of her ability to-"

"Spy." Lucas frowned. "She's a government spy. She's a pawn. And what's worse, she's more powerful than Marshall? Why don't you just give her the codes to the nuclear weapons?"

"I understand that you are apprehensive, especially given the past tendencies of psychics on this boat," Bridger responded, "but she's staying for a few weeks. She has to. They'll kill her."

"Sir," Ford cleared his throat, "does she have an agenda while she's here?"

"Yes," he said, "she will be working with Wendy on a research project. She was in the midst of her degree when she was pulled from the university. She'll be writing her thesis. She'll be quiet and secluded."

"Well, then, Lucas, I would get used to it, because it looks like you're going to be seeing a lot of this lady," Brody said, a smirk on his face. "Now, is the pretty woman from lunch – is she her daughter?"

"That's Vanessa," Bridger said, raising an eyebrow. Ford smirked to himself as the group dispersed towards the Bridge.

"Did you know we're experimenting on her?" Tony added to Lucas as they prepared for lights out. "We installed some of Professor Bingham's latest project around her room. Looks like I won't be the only guinea pig around here, so to speak."

"What is it?" Lucas asked, raising his eyes from text book. He stretched and waited for the response. "Tony."

"Yeah. It's this thing that reduces her powers or whatever she casts on people," Tony grumbled. "I ain't seen her yet, but I hear she's good. So we're trying that new stuff to see if it can contain her. 'cause if it contains the big ones, we can definitely contain a small ones."

"Huh." Lucas looked into the darkened tanks. That didn't seem right. It was illegal for them to experiment on her without her permission … if she hadn't given permission. He'd think about it in the morning, he decided, as he rolled over and curled his pillow under his head.

_I can't breathe_.

Vanessa sat up in her bed, gasping for air. Cold sweat trickled down her back as she tried to regulate her breathing. Counting. One. It was only a bad dream. Two. Exhale. Three. What if it was a presage? Four. Exhale. She trembled. It was lonely in her quarters.

No one wants to be friends with a mind reader anyway. She shivered and reached for her sweatshirt. She needed some water; she hoped she remembered how to find the mess. She opened the door and peeked out. There was no law against getting water, she assumed – she wasn't really a prisoner, she just felt like one.

"Hey."

She whirled around to see … Lt. Brody looking at her. "Hi."

"You're up awfully late," he said. He had a mischievous smile that seemed disarming. "I'm Jim. Jim Brody"

"Vanessa," she replied. "I can't sleep."

"Want to go for a walk?" he asked, gesturing to the hallway. "I won't keep you out too long."

She hesitated. Sensing her pause, he held his hand out to her. "I guess a short one?"

"Sure," he grinned. She seemed quiet and unsure of herself, he noted. "You're in the science labs, aren't you?"

"Yes," she replied. "I've been showing Wendy – Dr. Smith – some of my … research." The end of that statement sounded more like a question. He nodded. "I know they told you guys at the meeting. I couldn't help but-"

"Hey, if someone were talking about me, I'd use my intuition to listen in, too. I mean, who wouldn't?" he said. "Have you been on the Bridge?"

"No," she said, almost shyly. "I guess I haven't really made it a point to find my way around here."

"Well," he said, raising an eyebrow, "We will have to work on that."


	2. Chapter 2

"Morning, Captain," Secretary McGath greeted Bridger as he read over briefs.

"Morning, sir," he replied, sipping his coffee. "What can I do for you this morning?"

"The _seaQuest_ is conveniently in the area for a quick rendezvous with a cargo ship. We need you to arrange a short meet with them and pick up the cargo," he said. "Then when you cross through the Caribbean, she'll be able to drop it off at the dock station."

Bridger sensed something was wrong; the tense look on McGath's face confirmed it. "What cargo is this?"

"It's classified – we've been working on a new security program, and the hard copy needs to be transferred," McGath cleared his throat. "Lucas should be interested in it; in fact, we even considered having him recode it."

"Considered."

"We don't want to take any risks with the mind-reader on board."

"Mind reader!" Bridge balked, shaking his head, "You're the one who decided she'd be safer here."

"I believe Miss Dorchester will be. Once she's learned it, she'll be of great use to us, if she wants the position we're willing to offer her," McGath admitted. "In the meantime, she needs to learn to control herself."

"I see. Have you discussed this with her, or is she here on a ruse?" Bridger suddenly seemed to think he was trapped. It wasn't that he didn't like having this girl here, but if she were to pose a security threat – a major one – then his crew's safety was certainly more important.

"Free will, Nathan. She's a little vulnerable, and with a tool like that, we don't want her to fall into the wrong hands," McGrath said, "We have this under control."

"Can you change liquid into ice?"

"No."

"Have you ever tried?"

Vanessa hesitated. It was the third day on the ship, and Dr. Smith was already getting on her nerves. If she lied and said yes, would this woman leave her alone? She eyed Lucas to see if he was paying attention. He wasn't, from the looks of it.

"No."

"Would you mind trying?"

She closed her eyes and concentrated on a tumbler of water. She could feel her body tensing, straining, but it was as though she were watching it – not experiencing it. She took a sharp breath and pressed her thoughts forward.

Lucas stopped working on his improvements to the Stinger and watched. Vanessa looked as though she were in an awkward, uncomfortable trance. He put his pencil down and waited. He opened his mouth, but Wendy silenced him with a look.

"Keep trying," Dr. Smith watched her stopwatch and tapped her pencil. Terse lines had begun to form around her mouth; she seemed oblivious to the attempt Vanessa was making. Vanessa's hands were in tightly made fists as she gritted her teeth and concentrated. Lucas noted that she looked constipated, and they both broke into giggles.

"I'm sorry," she coughed, suppressing a smile. "I lost my concentration."

"Lucas, this is important," Dr. Smith snapped, "if she can do this, this is going to change the way people think of psychics forever. Can you please-"

Lucas nodded and turned back to his analysis. He shook his head to himself; Wendy was incredibly uptight today. Vanessa smiled at him shyly, and he couldn't help but smile back.

"Are you ready to try again?" Dr. Smith asked Vanessa. The doctor reset the glass of water on the table and waited.

"I can't do it, I've never done it," Vanessa insisted. She pulled her dark sleeves down for another try. She concentrated so hard that tears formed. Lucas watched her face contort in pain. He stood up, slowly, walking towards her. He'd never seen so much hurt before. He reached towards her shoulder, but withdrew at a sudden flinch.

Within a second, the glass shattered as though it'd been shot with a small bullet. Vanessa jumped and winced at the sound, her panic causing another empty beaker to slam to the floor. "I'm so sorry-"

"It's okay," Dr. Smith said calmly. "Dagwood will help us clean up. In the meantime-"

Vanessa put her head between her hands. "I'm sorry. I-" she dizzily tilted her head back and sat down. "I can't do this." Lucas sat next to her and instinctively put his arms around her. Hot tears formed at her eyes.

"Lucas," Dr. Smith said, not looking up from her board, "why don't you take Vanessa to the mess hall for lunch? Get her out of here so she can regain herself. We'll try again after lunch." She left the science lab with a brisk turn and disappeared down the corridor.

"You don't have to," Vanessa said, stopping Lucas before he had a chance to even suggest it. She moved away from him tried to regain control of her emotions. "I think I'm going to lie down."

"I'll walk you to your cabin," Lucas feebly said. He held his hand out for her, but she insisted on standing alone.

As they walked down the hall, Lucas scanned his mind for something they could talk about. It was difficult to concentrate; what if she were reading him while he was trying to come up with something clever? He helped her into the maglev and sat next to her.

"You're afraid of me," she said softly. She raised her eyes to meet his, and he saw a little piece of familiar loneliness. "The reading in the science lab was an accident. I didn't mean to, it's just that I was trying so hard to latch on to anything else-"

"Hey, it's okay," he said, forgetting his attempt at something clever. He leaned forward to look at her again. "I'm not afraid of you, either. You're not scary or anything."

"Thank you," she said, looking at the floor, "I've been so nervous-"

"I can't imagine," Lucas admitted. He ran his fingers through his hair. "I remember when I first came on board – I've been on forever – it felt so weird being the youngest one here, and the smartest." He eyed her from the side to see if he could read her face. He took her interest as an encouraging sign. "I mean, it's hard being the youngest anyway, but then to be new…everyone expects you to be something amazing."

"And I'm not."

"I bet you are," he said, smiling. "Besides, it takes a bit to get used to it here. It's probably hard to be here when everyone wants to experiment with you. Our last psychic encounter really didn't go so well…"

"That's what Jim said," Vanessa replied. She couldn't help but see Lucas visibly flinch at the name of his superior. "I didn't want this. I didn't want to develop this. But people think I can do incredible things, and I need to learn to adapt to it before I get into-"

"Thank you for riding maglev," the computerized voice interrupted. Lucas waited for Vanessa to finish her sentence, but when she wobbly stood up, he abandoned the idea. He walked with her to her dorm. Suddenly, it felt like the ending to an imaginary date.

"Um, so, I guess I'll see you around," she said, breaking the awkward silence. "Thanks."

"Hey," he said, catching her arm. He surprised himself sometimes, he realized, as he tried to cover his shock with a smile, "I'll be by to check on you. Maybe we'll talk then, huh?"

"Sure," she said, smiling slightly. She looked exhaustedly into her room. Lucas watched her close the door to her room as he realized that he might have to avoid her for the rest of his life. He had this tendency for developing a crush on every woman who ever set foot on _seaQuest_.


End file.
